The Death of Innocence

I recently read an entry from someone whom I hold an infinite amount of respect for and look up to. I was surprised to find how much it matched me and my own feelings on the subject. So, I figured I'd put my own two cents in for you to read.

When I was young, I believed in fairy tales. I believed that a jolly fat man came to give me presents ever Christmas. I believed that a super bunny rabbit would come around to every house and hide a bunch of colorful eggs. I believed a mystical fairy would pay me for my teeth. However, as I grew older, I found these stories, and so many more, to be false. However, that didn't really destroy everything I had known. Sure, I was disappointed to find that some random fat guy didn't give me presents every year (however, now that I think about it, perhaps that's a good thing) and it was really my parents. I was disappointed to find that some cute little rabbit in a little vest, top hat, and manacle (my version of the Easter Bunny) didn't arrive at my house to entertain me. I was disappointed to find that the Tooth Fairy didn't want to purchase my teeth (Which, again, if I think about it, really only teaches us from a young age to sell our bodies).

All of these things were all things our parents did to preserve our innocence in the world. They wanted us to have that bit of fairy tale for as long as possible. They wanted to shelter us from the horrific world we live in. However, I'm getting ahead of myself. Back to the original point.

Even with the death of those stories, I still had a bit of innocence. I believed that if you really wanted something enough, you could get it. I believed that if you wished hard enough, miracles could happen. I believed that there was good in everyone. I think my innocence lasted longer than some people's, which I can either look at as a good thing, or a horrible thing. I didn't really think that truly horrible stuff didn't actually happen till probably the eighth grade. I never watched the news. I always thought the bad stuff we learned about was all because people didn't know better back then. However, during the eight grade, my grandmother died. She was taken from us brutally by cancer. It was then that my innocence came crashing down around my ears. That was when I realized that the world isn't always a nice place.

And as I've grown older, I've realized that bad things tend to happen to the best people. I've come to the conclusion that bad people really do get to be happy, that they don't get their just desserts in the end. Does that mean I'm going to go become a criminal right now? No. I still have a sense of right and wrong, even if right is the harder road to travel. I guess I've learned that, no matter where you go in the world, there will always be violence, hatred, greed, lust, and death. As long as the human race exists, this world will be filled with those terrible things. Now, I'm not saying death and violence will stop if humans are wiped out. That's just the natural order. However, lions don't go up to gazelles and kill them just because they think the gazelle has nicer things. Animals kill to survive. For them, greed doesn't exist. Lust doesn't exist. Those are things humans have brought to this planet. We are a poison upon the earth.

Okay, so maybe I've gotten off the original topic, so sue me. As I was saying, innocence is something designed to keep the young happy, until they can handle other emotions. Until they can understand (although I will never understand why one person would kill another) why things happen in the world, innocence is required. Once you are old enough to understand, that's when everything comes crashing down. That's when you become jaded and guarded. That's when you become suspicious of everyone and everything.

For those of you who have read The Host, by Stephanie Myer, I have to say, I would love for that to happen to the human race. For those of you who haven't read it, I will give you a brief over view. Basically, a race of alien creatures travels the galaxy and takes over the brains of the species of each planet they go to. They insert themselves onto the brain of their host, and essentially take over their bodies. However, they are not a malicious race. They do this to bring peace to those worlds. For that species greed, lust, hatred, and violence does not exist. They then have new generations of that species and raise them to believe the same thing. When they took over the earth, they got rid of money, war machines, and things of the like. Because they don't lie, they are allowed to take only what they need. They can cure any disease easily, they are far more advanced than us, and they bring peace to the planet. I mean, it is bad that they essentially destroy the human they inhabit, but it is for the greater good.

What thoughts do you have on the matter? Leave a comment and let me know.